You live 1,000 miles from your intended elk hunting location. Or, maybe you just have too many family irons in the fire to make time to scout. Instead of watching another YouTube video about talking cats, use your spare minutes to scout from your home.

Chances are, there’s a bear lurking somewhere in every elk hunter’s mind. From California to Pennsylvania, anybody who hunts elk is likely in bear country. Whether pitching a tent at the beginning of the hunt, or harvesting an animal toward the end, bears have the potential to ruin your trip. Black bears should never be taken for granted, and those who hunt among grizzlies or brown bears always need to bring their A game. On …

Could this really be happening again?Not one, but three bulls screaming in a game of hide-and-seek broke the Montana wilderness silence. It’s typically an enticing sound, though this time it only aggravated my hunting partner and me. One bull would rush our calls and then disappear back into the safety of the timbered mesa. Seconds later another would mimic the routine. Every so often we’d catch a glimpse of the herd bull trying to keep …

For elk hunters, choosing a rifle is tough enough. Throw a scope in the mix, and it gets downright daunting. Plenty of elk died at the end of a set of old iron sights, but that’s not the case anymore. To help you navigate some of the ever-changing vernacular of “good glass,” we put together this scope tutorial. Hope it helps. Scope manufacturers are hard-pressed to make their product stand out from the competition, which …

To bugle in call-shy, public land bulls, a team approach is best. A caller needs to funnel elk to his shooter by moving around and simulating multiple cows. Many bulls will close a long distance gap but hang up around 100 yards when they don’t see a cow to corral. That’s when I use a special weapon called the ‘X-Zone.’ The caller needs to be a minimum of 100 to 150 yards from the shooter. …

Those who choose long-range marksmanship over real woodcraft forfeit the best of hunting: intimate encounters that make the heart gallop. Killing is a simple act, if not always easy. Bent solely on killing, you employ the most efficient tools and techniques. Sport hunting is not just killing, though. It’s a series of events that may yield a kill—but are themselves of value. For most hunters, process matters. With no chance for success, you wouldn’t hunt. …

Learn to build a fire anywhere, anytime and in any situation. Ever try building a fire when it’s 50 degrees, raining, and a foot of dense snow covers the ground? It’s not easy, and chances are you’re going to get cold. Fast. But understanding a few fire basics and some sample scenarios should keep you a little warmer this fall. As with most things, practice makes perfect. So don’t be afraid to build a fire …

Owning stock year-round for a few weeks’ worth of hunting might not be in your budget. Then again, renting stock for a hunt may not be in your best interest, either. More than a decade ago, my hunting buddies and I were “throwing loads” at a remote trailhead in the heart of the Greater Yellowstone Area’s elk country. We were on fire with the eagerness that always comes when you are about to head into …